


All Good Things Must Come to an End

by HighLadyOfRomanceAndAngst



Category: Stalking Jack the Ripper - Kerri Maniscalco
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:53:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24374578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HighLadyOfRomanceAndAngst/pseuds/HighLadyOfRomanceAndAngst
Summary: Audrey Rose Wadsworth has fallen sick with scarlet fever after taking care of her and Thomas’s children.
Relationships: Thomas Cresswell/Audrey Rose Wadsworth
Kudos: 16





	All Good Things Must Come to an End

Audrey Rose had prohibited Thomas from taking care of her, insisting she could manage well enough on her own. She bade him to tend to their children instead. Their children, William and Sophia, had also fallen ill with Scarlet Fever. The accursed disease had been brought from the place where William attended primary school. His sickness had, thankfully, been cured by his immune system. Sophia and Audrey Rose have not been so lucky

It was horrifying to watch his wife and children develop the tell-tale red rashes of the disease. He had to watch as Audrey Rose screamed at him to get away from her, to quarantine himself far away from the house.

Thomas allowed himself to sit outside of their bedroom door and talk to her through a crack. It wasn’t her favorite idea, but she couldn’t do a damn thing about if he had anything to say about it. 

The chair he had chosen to sit was quite frankly very uncomfortable, but he would endure any amount of pain if it meant he got to be near his wife. “My love? What story would you like me to tell you today? Shall I speak of our grand love story that can compare to no other? Or would you rather I relish in our adventures of squandering the evil forces that sought to tear us apart?”

A choked laugh rose from inside the bedroom. The laugh was immediately followed by a coughing fit that caused Thomas to tense up. He rose quickly from his chair, knocking it to the floor with a loud bang. Despite Audrey Rose’s warnings not to come into the room, he ran inside, almost slipping on the rug at the foot of their bed.

Her black hair was plastered to her face from the fever. Her emerald eyes were quite unfocused, although they still held the razor sharp intelligence that Thomas loved more than anything. Spots of red decorated her face, and her arms, declaring she was sick. Her white nightgown was falling open at the top, exposing more of her than he knew she would have liked. But that wasn’t what drew his attention the most. Drops of blood were gathered at the corner of her mouth.

“Are you alright? Do you want me to get you some water?” He was frantic with the thought of losing her. He couldn’t bear the thought of this woman not being in his life.

As if annoyance, she wiped away the blood with the back of an all too pale hand. “If I needed your help, Cresswell, I would have asked you. I told you not to come into this room. You’re sure to catch what I have, and I-” Her voice broke off in a sob, tears pricking in her eyes. “I can’t bear the thought of you lying sick like me in bed. Like you were when Holmes poisoned you.” 

Of all the things she was concerned about, not the fact that he could die, but the fact that she didn’t want him to become vulnerable. He shook his head in response, his heart swelling with love. “In sickness and in health remember? Beyond life, beyond death, my love for thee is eternal. No matter how much you sicken, I’ll be by your side through it all. I don’t want to waste our time together. Besides, I think I’ve developed quite the immunity from this.” Thomas was practically begging her to let him stay. He was like a puppy dog in need of love. 

A wild storm of emotions crossed his love’s face as she debated the pros and cons of letting him risk catching the disease. “I don’t know, Thomas… there’s so much you are leaving up to chance. How could I willingly let you do such a thing?” She breathed in, her breath a death rattle in her throat.

“Mama, Papa?” A small voice said at the door. They both turned in answer to the call. Their children had come to see what all the ruckus was about.

Thomas rose from his place beside the bed and walked over to them. “What is it, my darlings? Did we wake you from sleep?”

They walked past his open arms and climbed into the bed of their mother. Their small figures were barely tall enough to reach the top of the mattress. “Sophia had a nightmare of a monster,” William said simply as if it were obvious.

“Thomas,” Audrey Rose hissed. “Get them out of here. I don’t want them to be in such close quarters-”

He took his wife’s hand, hard enough to prevent her from pulling away, and smiled sadly. “This may be all the time we have left as a family. Let’s enjoy it while we still can.”

Hesitantly she whispered, “Okay. You pick the story to tell this time”

Their children cheered and snuggled up against their mother’s side, basking in her warmth. “Tell us a fairytale of a prince and princess!” Sophia threw her tiny arms up into the air, her emerald eyes wild with excitement. 

Thomas chuckled and reached over to ruffle her dark brown hair. “As you wish, my darling. Once upon in a land long since forgotten by our people, a princess was born to a loving mother and father. As the princess grew older, her beauty was unmatched in all the realm. Her flowing ebony hair, emerald eyes, and fair skin was the talk of the court. But this was not the only thing that led her to be beautiful. Her intelligence and wit were coveted by all. She possessed a curiosity that brought her to the study of forensics. Her father disapproved of this practice, and thought it to be unnatural.”

Audrey Rose snorted in response. Sophia merely bounced with excitement with William snoring softly in the background.

“This did not deter the princess from pursuing what she loved, however, and continued to do so in secret. The princess used her Uncle’s connections and quietly practiced under the watchful eye of the moon. Soon after she began her apprenticeship, she came across a male who also worked with her uncle. This man was delightfully handsome, charming, witty, and overall a very good looking individual. Days passed and the man and princess began to meet in secret. The man was later revealed to be a prince from a neighboring kingdom, visiting for a few months. After talking for months on end, the pair eventually fell in love with each love. They explored their newfound relationship that had many, many ups and downs. Evil forces tried, and failed, to tear the two of them apart. One such force was another man in the court of the princess. This man was, also, very charming and nearly stole the princess away. But fate intervened and the prince and princess lived happily ever after.”

The snores of his children reached his ears, and Thomas tore his gaze away from looking into his wife’s eyes. He had gotten lost in the story just by looking at Audrey Rose. Her breaths started to come slower now to the point where he knew something was very wrong.

“What is it?” Audrey Rose asked, not seeming to understand the dire situation.

He bit his lip, not sure if he was overreacting. He forced himself to calculate the positives of it all and believe this would all turn out all right. Thomas kissed her boiling forehead, choosing to think of all the good memories they would have in the future. “Nothing, nothing. I’m beginning to think your fever will break and we can get back to normal.” 

Her smile was absolutely heartbreaking in its beauty. “Someday we can look back and laugh. But for now… put the children to bed please.” 

He scooped up their children, one in each arm, and put them into their rightful bedrooms. He returned to his wife, settling beside her once more. 

As if by magic, the rash had seemingly spread up even more in the few minutes he had left her alone. “My love… are you certain you’re alright?”

“Yes, Thomas, I am perfectly alright. Now, entertain me with your wicked thoughts.” She faintly smiled at him, already seeing the spark that went through him at his words.

“Whatever you desire, I shall deliver.”

The two of them talked into the night until the sun started to rise on the horizon. Golden rays of light gleamed through the open window, illuminating Audrey Rose’s face into a picture of sheer piece of art. Even with the disease, she was still the most dazzling woman on Earth.

“Cresswell…” She murmured finally, taking his hand. “I love you… More than all the stars in this universe. In this life and ever after. I love you.”

With a final, shuddering breath, Audrey Rose’s eyes closed and did not open again. Her chest slowed, until finally her heart stopped beating. Audrey Rose Cresswell was dead.

Thomas put his face in his hands, and for the first time in a long time, let his heart bleed out and let the flood of emotions overcome his logic. His sobs could be heard all throughout the house, waking everyone from slumber. His love was gone, and was not coming back. Scarlet fever had claimed her just like her mother.

**Author's Note:**

> I feel remorse for killing off our queen, but the angst lives inside of me. I cannot control its will.


End file.
